The archipelago of Cape Verde has been topping the lists of buy-to-let and investment hotspots for a while now, with British buyers among those who are singing the islands' praises most strongly. Cape Verde is comprised of ten volcanic islands and five islets, located 600 kilometres off the coast of West Africa. The Cape Verde government states that tourism has been increasing by 25 per cent each year since 2002, the Global Property Group reports, with the number of tourists predicted to reach 500,000 following the completion of all new airports and infrastructure. Recently, Paul Akswei of Noscasa estate agents told the Sun that the island had good prospects for capital growth and likened property investment in the former Portuguese colony as putting money "somewhere safe", then watching it grow. With that intention in mind, what options are there for those who would like to take out a mortgage for their property purchase? Is the mortgage market in Cape Verde a viable option or still in development - and is there any hope for interested buyers in the near future? The answer, it seems, is mixed. Firstly, explained Heather Chambers, director of International Mortgage Solutions, buy-to-let mortgages are not available in Cape Verde. "So unless you can provide evidence of your own income, you can be comfortable that you're going to rent the property out until the cows come home, but the bank's not going to accept [the mortgage application]," she said. In addition, she said that she is hesitant about dealing with banks in the archipelago in general, claiming they may not always follow through on what they say they are going to do, adding that "as a broker, I can't deal with that level of uncertainty". Ms Chambers said that most Cape Verde banks "offer the standard 70 per cent" loan-to-value ratio, but recommended that investors look into borrowing through a Portuguese bank called Banif, which offers 85 per cent loan-to-value. "I think someone coming in and beating 85 per cent of purchase price is very, very unlikely," she stated. Banif also has the advantage of offering loans with fixed criteria, while other Cape Verde banks may not offer such groupings, Ms Chambers added. So it seems that taking the advice of Noscasa's Mr Akswei and buying a property in Cape Verde this sunny island paradise could indeed be an option for British buyers - as long as they also take the recommendations of Ms Chambers and exercise caution when taking out a Cape Verde Property mortgage. In today's world Property investment is an excellent investment option especially investment in UK
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